Member spotlight: four members join forces in a new China-ASEAN council
In April we reported on the Galaxy Orientis China-ASEAN Investment Platform, a private equity vehicle anchored by three of our members: China Investment Corporation (CIC), the Indonesia Investment Authority (INA) and SOFAZ. This month the same three went a step further. On 8 September, at the China International Fair for Investment and Trade in Xiamen, they joined Khazanah Nasional, a fourth IFSWF member, in launching the China-ASEAN Joint Investment Council (CAJIC), convened by CIC. Malaysia's KWAP and Thailand's Government Pension Fund complete the founding group.
CAJIC aims to be a sovereign-to-sovereign platform connecting capital and knowledge between China and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) through an annual forum, research, and executive training. The Council's value “will lie in its ability to connect institutions, ideas, and opportunities”, said at inception, Oki Ramadhana, CEO of INA.
“For SOFAZ, CAJIC is a natural extension of our approach to building long-term partnerships with leading sovereign institutions,” CEO Israfil Mammadov commented. “The Council provides a valuable forum for peer institutions to exchange perspectives, strengthen relationships and explore areas of practical cooperation”, he added. The launch came a few weeks after CIC named Wu Wei as its vice-chairman and president.
CAJIC is its founders' own initiative, but it is heartening to see members pooling knowledge and seeking common ground. That habit of peer exchange is one of IFSWF's core values, and we encourage it; we also look forward to following the Council's work.
Transformation: KIC builds patient capital at home
Speaking at a conference hosted by KB Financial Group and the Alternative Investment Management Association in Seoul on 10 September, Korea Investment Corporation chief executive Park Il-young outlined the thinking behind KIC's new strategic investment account: no preset maturity or liquidation date; an anchor role drawing overseas capital into Korean strategic sectors, including AI and semiconductors; and follow-on investment once policy funding ends.
KIC's ability to invest domestically is the biggest transformation since its founding. We look forward to following the account as it takes shape.
In New York for UNGA week
IFSWF’s Secretariat CEO Duncan Bonfield spent the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) week in New York to meet members and stakeholders on the sidelines of the Assembly. On 21 September, he spoke on the Capital and Partnerships panel at “GCC Economies: Resilience, Investment, and Strategic Partnerships”, co-organised by DLA Piper and Highbridge Advisory, alongside ALTÉRRA chief executive Majid Al Suwaidi, Golub Capital chief executive Lawrence Golub and Nuveen's Shawn Lese. The programme opened with remarks from GCC Secretary General Jasem Mohamed AlBudaiwi.
Results season: strong numbers, shifting portfolios
Members with June year-ends reported strong results. The New Zealand Superannuation Fund returned 14.17% after costs in the year to 30 June. That was broadly in line with its Reference Portfolio and 11.46 percentage points above the Treasury bill benchmark, lifting the fund to NZ$94.4bn ($54.5 billion). The Guardians pointed to strong global equity markets and a portfolio spread across timber, real estate, private markets and listed companies. Chief executive Jo Townsend argued that over the long term "a more diversified portfolio is better suited to our mandate". Future Fund returned 14.8%, taking the fund to A289.7 billion ($203.4 billion) and its ten-year return to 9.0% a year, well ahead of its 7.1% target; Chair Greg Combet called it one of the strongest results in the fund's twenty-year history. The Alaska Permanent Fund returned 12.4% net of fees, closing its financial year at $91.9 billion.
Beneath the headline returns, portfolios are being repositioned. ADIA's 2025 Review raised its target ranges for private equity (to 15–20%, from 12–17%) and financial alternatives (to 7–12%, from 5–10%), and lowered real estate to 2–7%, while noting that its absolute real estate exposure held steady. Its 20- and 30-year annualised returns rose to 6.6% and 7.2%. SOFAZ, meanwhile, held 31.4% of its $72.6 billion portfolio in gold at 30 June, some 178.1 tonnes, alongside 33.8% in fixed income, 28.1% in equities and 6.7% in real estate and infrastructure. Different mandates, different answers to one question: how to preserve value when volatility looks structural rather than episodic.
Future Fund's results came with news of a farewell. Raphael Arndt will step down as chief executive at the end of the year, after six years in the role and nearly two decades with the organisation. Future Fund chairs the steering committee of our Resilience Playbook, and we thank Raphael warmly for his support of the Forum's work.